In the field of adjustable knee braces or supports, it is desirable that the brace include arrangements for limiting the movement of the lower leg relative to the upper leg both as to bending the knee or flexion, and as to extension of the lower leg relative to the upper leg. Various knee brace arrangements have been proposed, and these have included upper struts for extending along the thigh, and lower struts for extending along the lower leg or calf. These are normally provided both on the inside or medial side of the leg and also on the outer or lateral side of the leg; and the medial and lateral struts are normally padded, and provided with straps to hold them in place. Pivoting arrangements are provided for coupling the upper and lower struts, and stops are provided for limiting both extension and flexion of the knee.
The prior art patents in the filed of knee braces include U.S. Pat. No. 5,672,152 granted Sep. 30, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,946, granted Jul. 13, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,588, granted Apr. 14, 1989, U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,543 granted Sep. 4, 1990, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,532 granted Nov. 4, 1986. Although many of the foregoing provided useful results, these prior art knee braces had shortcomings, in that they were unduly bulky, or were not simple to adjust, or did not have as many stop increments as would be desired, or were otherwise not ergonomically configured.